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Malachy, a Pekingese, won the Toy group Monday at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

The Journal provides minute-by-minute analysis of Monday’s first night of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden in New York. Guest blogger Jonah Keri offers commentary on the show and the USA Network and CNBC telecasts.

Coverage of the 135th edition of the Westminster Kennel Club dog show starts tonight at 8 p.m. on USA Network and then moves to CNBC from 9 p.m. until 11 p.m., with the second night of competition and the Best In Show award slated for Tuesday from 8-11 p.m. on USA. A total of 179 breeds will be represented in seven groups: Hound, Toy, Non-Sporting and Herding Groups on Monday, and Sporting, Working and Terrier on Tuesday. A total of 2,500 dogs will compete, first for Best In Breed (held earlier in the day), then Best In Group and finally, Best In Show. They’ll be vying to succeed Sadie the Scottish Terrier, last year’s Best In Show winner.

Here’s what to watch for:

Six new breeds will compete this year: the Boykin Spaniel (Sporting group), the Bluetick Coonhound and Redbone Coonhound (Hound group), the Cane Corso and Leonberger (Working group) and the Icelandic Sheepdog (Herding group).

The Wynn Las Vegas casino pegs the Fox Terrier (Smooth) as this year’s favorite, getting 6-to-1 odds. The Saluki and Bassett Hound are the biggest long shots, each at 135-to-1.

The two most popular American Kennel Club-registered breeds, the Labrador and Golden retrievers, have both never won Best in Show.

The lovely Tiffany Simons is getting cozy with the Bluetick and Redbone Coonhounds, two of the new breeds tonight. Mary Carillo follows with a “Release the Hounds” call to tease the Hound group, coming up after the break. I mean, seriously: Is there any better way to spend Valentine’s Day with your loved one?

“May we have the Hound group in the ring, please?” Mike LaFave is back! Sharp viewers will note the voice of Westminster didn’t make it to last year’s show. That was the saddest day in the history of sports. Glad to right that wrong this year.

The Basenji is a breed that chortles and yodels instead of barking. LaFave notes that the breed has a “mischievous” sense of humor. Carillo asks if that means Basenjis will “short-sheet the bed.” Score one for Ms. Carillo.

Analyst David Frei sizes up the 13-inch Beagle, noting the pooch’s perfect stance after his walk-through and that handlers always hope their dog brings its A game on this night. He’s so right! Who can forget the infamous Border-Collie-chasing-its-tail-for-an-hour incident of ’99?

It’s the Bloodhound! Of course, the joke about this dog was that we lived in Pine Nut, and I think that’s what put it in my mind at that point. So she would hear me in the other room, and she’d just start yelling. I’d say, “Peanut. Hazelnut. Cashew nut. Macadamia nut.”

The Bluetick Coonhound, the first of tonight’s new breeds, gets a warm reception from the crowd at Madison Square Garden. The Westminster spectators are so incredibly earnest and supportive every year, just like the five fans that show up at Islanders games.

The Longhaired Dachshund gives us our first doggie spaz moment of the night, sprinting ahead of its owner. Dachshunds are cute but fierce, known to hunt badgers. Jared Sullinger could have used some of that verve.

Friend of the live blog Meredith points out that the Borzoi is owned by Mitchell (Jesse Tyler) from “Modern Family.” This is a considerably better omen than the PBGV entered by Ken Caminiti back in the day. (Seriously. That happened.)

In the comments, Elkhound Lover notes that I snubbed the Norwegian Elkhound. I try to comment on as many breeds as I can, but I can’t possibly keep up with all 179 over two nights. But duly noted: The Elkhound was, indeed, beautiful. I remember the first time I saw an Elkhound on the street. I couldn’t place the breed, so I asked the owner, a nice middle-aged lady. She gave me the whole spiel and let me pet the dog. They’re fantastic.

That’ll do it for the preliminary portion of the Hound group. The judge will now look deadly serious, stroll the ring several times, call out his favorite few and then pick the group winners one through four. This is a very, very tough group. I did like the 13-inch Beagle, for what it’s worth.

“Ever seen any stats on how this show affects dog adoption or purchase?”

The needle usually moves most on the breed that wins Best in Show. When Josh the Newfoundland won, Newfie adoptions really spiked. The hope is that the people adopting a given breed know what they’re doing. The Newf is my breed of my choice, and the next time we adopt a dog, that’s the one we plan to get. (We went bonkers when Josh won.) But we’re prepared for a 150-pound drooling and shedding machine, albeit one with a heart of gold. Not everyone is. As David Frei often reminds us: Do as much research as possible before adopting a dog. It’s a 10-to-15-year commitment, not a Chia pet.

“My daughter has a Ridgeback and sheâ€™s the sweetest baby ever. Dogs have personalities too, just like humans. Some of us are hateful, some are sweet. And itâ€™s sad if we call one breed beautiful and another ugly. Letâ€™s just love â€˜em all!”

Now that’s sweet. Please note that if I were live-blogging, say, a Mets-Phillies game, 90 people would have wished death on Chase Utley or Jose Reyes by this point.

A couple friends of ours doubled as real estate agents — they got us a great deal — and owners of two Italian Greyhounds. They’re cute, but for dogs you don’t have to brush, they’re about as high-maintenance as can be. Not for the faint of heart.

Here’s an adorable Papillon named Payton, and Frei reminds us that a Pap named Kirby won Best in Show in 1999. Is it a good or bad thing that I can probably recite the last 15 winners off the top of my head?

It’s easier for the dog to gather itself that way, rather than being cast out of a handler’s arms. Many of the smaller breeds are bred to have tails like that, anyway. Dachschunds, in particular, were bred to go into small holes in the ground to flush out badgers and various rodents. You’re supposed to pull them out by the tail.

Never seen that before! The Affenpinscher had been pulled out, like it would be Best in Group. The judge then asked the Pek’s owner to lift him up so he could get a better look at its head. Then, the Pek was bumped to the front and won the group! Guaranteed comedy for Best in Show tomorrow night, folks. There is no funnier show dog than a Pekingese.

All right, I’ll say it: Why, Standard Poodle judges? Why? These are great dogs when given a natural clip — as athletic as a Golden Retriever, and nice to look at, too. Instead, we get Mr. T barber school for dogs.

The broadcast is airing a special segment on Chewee the Leonberger, one of the new breeds this year. Remember when we discussed adoption stats? I have a hunch Leonberger adoptions will go up after this. What a cool dog.

“May we have the Herding group in the ring, please!” One of my favorites. In addition to our Bearded Collie, we also owned an Old English Sheepdog named Jesse, even though Border Collies’ stares scare the bejeezus out of me.

I have great admiration for the handlers of these dogs. It takes a lot of work to get the dogs to perform to the best of their abilities. The junior handlers, just high school kids, are even more impressive. With that established, though: Is that really what you want to wear the one time in your life you’re on national TV? These people looked like they shopped at Filene’s Basement’s Basement’s Basement’s Basement.

A really handsome Canaan Dog bounds across the carpet. This is the only AKC-recognized dog native to Israel. Speaking of Israel: After the show, I’m getting on an El Al flight to Haifa faster than a walnut can roll off a henhouse roof.

“Could someone tell me if the Pyrenees is in the herding group or working groupâ€¦.”

The Great Pyrenees is in the working group, Tia, though the confusion is understandable. The Herding and Working groups were separated fewer than 30 years ago, and similarities remain. But yeah: All those great European mountain dogs are considered Working group.

My late grandmother had a Puli growing up as a kid in Hungary. Pulik and Komondors, another Hungarian breed, both have mop-like coats. If you don’t properly groom one of these dogs after a bath, it can take days to undo all the knots. So, again: Think about what you’re doing before you choose a dog.

There is going to be some blatant homerism tomorrow night when we return at 8 p.m. for the second night of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show — and root for Mr. Baggins. The Terrier, Working and Sporting groups will weigh in, followed by Best in Show. Good times.

Until then, as the great Cookie Fleck once said: Don’t worry Gerry, I know where I’m at. But that was fun. See you soon!

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